Windows That Don’t Need Cleaning

I have a funny, wise-cracking optometrist. A generation behind mine, he finds great joy in telling me I have old eyes.

They go with the rest of the old me.

I was seeing him (no pun intended) for a checkup for those old eyes. My contacts felt scratchy, my glasses were the wrong prescription. Seeing was becoming an issue.

Especially driving at night. Nobody likes driving with me at night.

What I wasn’t counting on was having him dilate my eyes. Where your pupils become huge and light comes streaming in like gangbusters. And seeing becomes a whole new challenge.

And I had to drive home.

Between squinting and squishing my eyes to see through little slits, I made it home. But everything looked so different. Filmy and fuzzy. Light flickering around objects as if they were back lit. It made for an interesting ride.

Didn’t hit a thing.

It’s amazing how significant being able to see is. Our perception is so often clouded by the filter or grid we choose to look through: our experiences of the moment, how we feel about ourselves or our situation, how we think others are viewing us. Who we are–our stories–impact our view of life. These wonderfully written stories color the way we see things.

Like a paint by numbers picture. Only the numbers keep changing.

But it does make me wonder how I’m seen. How I’m perceived. Is who I am really a product of what other people think they see? What they understand me to be? Does the filter others use for me consist of my failures, my limitations, my disappointments? Or am I seen as more than that?

There’s an old English proverb that’s been credited to a number of poets that speaks to the wonder of true sight. “The eyes are the windows to the soul.” Really seeing someone is being able to look at the whole person. Seeing past the exterior, past the emotion, past the circumstances.

There is only One who sees me perfectly–the One who made me to be more than I often settle for. The One who sees what I really am and loves me so much that He’s making me more than I could ever hope to be. Nothing is hidden from Him. Nothing is distorted, nor is it masked. I am fully seen, fully known. Fully loved.

“You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in Your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” Psalm 139:15-16

God sees the real me. Everything exposed. And the picture He paints of me is more glorious than I can ever imagine.

Related

I loved, ” ‘The eyes are the windows to the soul.’ Really seeing someone is being able to look at the whole person. Seeing past the exterior, past the emotion, past the circumstances.” Thanks for putting a new spin on a familiar truth.

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Tip of My Iceberg is my view of the bigger picture of life. It's my take on story, with all its twists and turns, drama and joy, chaos and fun. As a Jesus follower, my view takes into account an eternal perspective. The really big picture. Thanks for stopping by!